Single-audit package approved; district notes repeat material‑weakness from county cash reconciliations

The Catalina Foothills Unified School District governing board approved the district’s single audit reporting package for the year ending June 30, 2024, in a 5-0 vote after a presentation from Director of Finance Lisa Tatel that highlighted both clean federal program findings and a repeat material weakness affecting the district’s financial statements.

Why it matters: The audit found “no reportable weaknesses related to our major federal program awards,” Tatel told the board, but identified a repeat material weakness stemming from continued delays and incomplete corrective actions in reconciling cash balances between the county superintendent of schools’ office and the county treasurer’s office. That material weakness required the district to include a corrective-action plan in the reporting package.

What the audit found: Tatel told the board the audit included several items summarized in the uniform system of financial records (USFR) compliance questionnaire. She said auditors identified two minor attendance reporting errors (one high‑school absence overstated by 0.25 days and one CTE absence understated by 0.5 days) that have since been corrected. The audit also identified a reported omission of $2,105 in interest income reported by the county superintendent of schools that was not initially included in the district’s annual financial report; staff said they identified and corrected that amount. Tatel said total district revenue for fiscal year 2024 was $71,800,000 and noted the $2,105 figure was small relative to that total.

County reconciliation issue and response: Tatel said the county superintendent’s office acknowledged responsibility in a formal letter included in the audit documents. The district prepared a corrective action plan and said it will begin performing independent reconciliations directly with the Pima County Treasurer to reduce dependency on the county superintendent’s timeline. “We will begin independently reconciling the county superintendent of schools’ records to the county treasurer’s office ourselves,” Tatel said, and noted the work is time consuming and will add workload to district accounting staff.

Board questions and timeline: Board members asked whether the district planned to continue independent reconciliations after county systems are up to date; Tatel said continued monitoring would likely remain part of district practice. The district also noted it was reconciled through February 2025 with the county treasurer at the time of the presentation. Tatel said the corrective action plan and documentation are included in the reporting package.

Vote and outcome: A board member moved to approve the single audit reporting package for the year ending 06/30/2024 “as presented.” A second followed and the motion carried 5-0.

Clarifying details: The audit began in May in prior years and extended later this cycle, with some audit work finishing closer to March of the following year; the district’s corrective-action plan includes performing regular independent reconciliations with the county treasurer and following up on attendance reporting and procurement documentation practices.